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Wednesday, December 9, 2015

SPOILERS: Gotham Academy #13

Note: This isn't an ordered tie-in, it can be read whenever in terms of this week's books.

I've always wanted a character in this book to be the child of a Court of Owls member, so does this issue give me what I wanted? Well... eh, close enough.

The Spoilers:

So some kid on campus stole some money and another kid is a Robin. Chases happen and both of them stop short once what looks like a zombie emerges from the ground in the greenhouse.

Next morning, those kids are expelled and Olive is asked to show the new girl Riko around. Detective club goes on the case to look for the "zombie" and soon find out Riko is one of the Robins (if you're not reading We Are Robin, she's one of the main characters from that book). Maps fangirls out, Olive isn't pleased. Turns out zombie guy is a big ol' Talon who got resurrected by some power line running under the school.

The kids enlist Dr. Langstrom to help try and find the Talon who got away. They're all shooed away by the groundskeeper (in leagues with the CoO) and end back at Langstrom's lab) They eventually lure the Talon in and it turns out he's pretty alright, and recognizes Olive due to her distinctive traits which run in the Silverlock family. So him not being a threat, the Talon is kept under the watch of the faculty.

So that morning, Riko gets pinched by the cops right? Why? Because Olive fucking narked on her. Straight up. She didn't want Maps getting involved so she narked, kinda messed up. Maps thinks so too and goes after Riko, only to be stopped by Damian who's hiding in a tree, telling her he's hidden equipment for her to use at a certain point if need be and that Olive is looking out for her. Some shit's coming Gotham's way and it's best to stay out of it.

END.

The Opinion:

So, Olive with the dick move, right? Reading that was kind of a "wait... really?" moment, which is actually fitting given the events of Grayson #15, but more on that later. But seriously... Shitty move. Just kind of surprising, don't really know how I feel about it. Outside of that, it was sort of what you'd expect from a Gotham Academy tie-in to a serious toned crossover, takes a light-hearted approach while adding more lore to the school and its history.

Adam Archer illustrated the issue, and I've got to say, I wasn't expecting much from the preview... That Robin's haircut is just dumb looking. But, I'll admit that his art grew on me as the issue progressed. It's really expressive and fits the book's tone pretty well, so consider me a bit surprised at how much I enjoyed the visuals.

Is the issue essential to reading Robin War? No, not really, but if you're reading Gotham Academy anyways, there's no real reason not to, as it provides much of the mainstays that the series is known for at this point.